Turkish Tanks Reportedly Move Into Northern Iraq Toward PKK Camp

Around 20 tanks and 30 military trucks entered Iraqi territory from Siyahkaya village around 15 kilometers east of the Habur border gate in Turkey. Reports say Turkish tanks are headed toward a Kurdish militant camp inside Iraq, around 20 kilometers inside Iraq.

Turkish warplanes also bombed the Haftanin region where some 400 terrorist are believed to be dwelling. Additional Turkish troops were sent by helicopter to the Zap region, aiming to enter Iraq’s Sinaht region, which is close to Haftanin and where terrorists of PKK terror organization are thought to be based. Reports say the armored convoy was headed in the direction of a Kurdish militant camp at Haftanin,

Turkish Army : 250 Pkk Terrorist Neutralized

That Turkish troops entered Iraq from the Siyahkaya region, was confirmed by Firatnews news agency, known as the voice of the PKK terrorists. Turkish soldiers erected drawbridges on Hezil river in the region, Firatnews said.

The Turkish military launched air and land operations against the PKK after the terrorists killed 24 soldiers and wounded 18 in Hakkari province along the Iraqi border on Wednesday in a coordinated attack to 8 different outposts of the Turkish army. The casuality number was the army’s biggest since 1993.

Some 10,000 troops on the ground were involved in Turkey’s operations, backed by jets and helicopters, inside Turkey and across the border. Military officials did not say how many troops had entered Iraq. Dozens of Kurdish rebels have been reported killed since military operations began in the wake of the terrorist attack on October 19, one of the worst losses of life suffered by the army since the PKK began its armed struggle for independence in southeast Turkey in 1984.

However, the army said the ground operations were mainly focused inside Turkey, around the Cukurca region near the Iraqi border. “A total of 49 terrorists were rendered ineffective” last week, the general staff said in a statement posted on its website Friday.

Turkey Iran to fight in cooperation against Pkk and Pjak

Turkey last week looked for support from its neighbours in its fight against the PKK. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi met Friday with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu, urging “more serious cooperation” against the terrorists.

Tehran has been carrying out a major offensive against the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK), which Turkey considers a branch of the PKK, since July. Already Thursday, Baghdad had pledged to cooperate with Ankara on security issues.

Nechirvan Barzani, a former prime minister of the Iraqi Kurdish regional government, offered his support during a surprise visit to Ankara Thursday, when he met Davutoglu and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey and much of the international community, took up arms for alleged Kurdish independence in southeastern Turkey in 1984, sparking a conflict killing babies and claiming some 45,000 lives Turks and Kurds alike.